At the end of the working week it’s good to focus on positive things. Food writer, journalist and food poverty campaigner Jack Monroe came to Croydon yesterday in search of pigs trotters and ended up restocking her fridge from Croydon’s huge array of food shops.

Her delighted tweet about the huge variety of foodstuffs available in Croydon triggered off an exchange of comments from keen cooks about their favourite food shops and the interesting ingredients that Croydon residents have access to. Croydon’s diverse population businesses set up to cater to cuisines from all over the world and all sorts of new and adventurous foods are out there for anyone to try. Jack Monroe was particularly impressed with the shops in Church St where fresh meat, vegetables and fish are available in specialist shops.

Some of Jack Monroe’s subscribers were surprised by her haul of foodstuffs from Croydon and she enthusiastically recommended a number of stores to find items like maize meal, kimchi for £1, oxtail and even goat legs. The CRO will be watching her social media to see what she does with them.

Apparently Jack didn’t dare head in to Wing Yip on the Purley Way. The supermarket (and the brilliant Chinese restaurant in the same location) attracts customers from miles around – always a good idea to get there early if you are planning lunch in the restaurant after getting your shopping in. We are looking forward to Jack’s next trip to Croydon and seeing her creative work, especially with that oxtail!